Wipro Delayed Onboarding of Over 250 Freshers, NITES Complains to Labour Ministry

The Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES) has complained to the Ministry of Labour & Employment over the delayed onboarding of more than 250 fresh graduates by IT services major Wipro across multiple states.

According to NITES, the affected candidates were issued letters of intent around May 2025 but have yet to be formally onboarded as employees.

“Over a period of several months, the affected candidates repeatedly approached the company through official emails, calls and written representations seeking clarity regarding their onboarding status. In response, they either received no reply or were provided vague and automated responses referring to business demand, future batches or tentative timelines that were never honoured,” NITES said in its complaint addressed to Union Labour & Employment Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on January 19.

The workers’ body added that the letters of intent did not clearly or transparently state that onboarding could be delayed indefinitely at the company’s discretion, without any outer time limit.

“The impact on these young graduates has been devastating. Many have remained unemployed for months after being officially selected, facing financial pressure at home, loss of confidence and severe mental stress. Families that trusted the reputation of a large IT company are now struggling because careers were put on hold without warning or accountability,” said Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES.

According to the union, the affected candidates come from multiple states, including Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand.

“The pan-India nature of the complaints indicates a systemic recruitment issue rather than an isolated administrative lapse,” it alleged.

NITES has urged the ministry to intervene to protect the interests of the affected candidates.

An email sent to Wipro seeking a response to the complaint did not elicit any reply.

The complaint comes after the company, following its third-quarter results, said it expects to hire about 7,500–8,000 fresh graduates in the 2025–26 financial year (FY26), lower than its earlier guidance.

“This quarter, recruitment from campuses was muted; we had only about 400-odd freshers join. We had earlier said 10,000. I think we’ll end up between 7,500 and 8,000,” Wipro CHRO Saurabh Govil said on January 16 during the Q3 earnings press conference.

The company’s year-to-date fresher intake remains above 5,000. Wipro added 6,529 employees during the October–December quarter, taking its total headcount to 2,42,021.

Govil also said overall hiring volumes have slowed as Wipro sharpens its focus on building a workforce suited to AI-led projects. This commentary aligns with trends at other IT firms such as HCLTech, Tech Mahindra and Infosys, which have stepped up hiring of specialised graduates with higher pay.

On Monday, shares of the Bengaluru-based company plunged as much as 9% after brokerages flagged its Q3 earnings, which missed expectations. Wipro reported revenue growth of 1.4% quarter-on-quarter.

According to a note by JM Financial on Monday, the performance was “impacted by a slower ramp-up of large deals and weakness in the EMR vertical; Capco saw seasonality and was flat year-on-year”.

“Overall, the quarter was lacklustre and highlighted persistent growth challenges. Strong LTM deal bookings are yet to translate into revenue,” the brokerage said.

At 11.11 am, Wipro shares were trading at ₹248.20, down 7.13% on the BSE.